PCI Compliance – Why spas, hotels and resorts can no longer ignore it! – By Frank Pitsikalis, ResortSuite Founder & CEO ResortSuite

Years ago, a merchant’s crime threats were limited to an armed delinquent or a shoplifter. Today you can add the cyber thief to that list. This thief is looking for a more profitable payoff, your customer’s/guest’s payment card information. He or she is much more savvy and capable of doing more harm to your business than just emptying your hotel’s front desk float or spa’s cash register. This breed of thief can cost you thousands of dollars, your reputation, and the ability to accept payment cards.
Since January 2005 more than 245 million databases containing sensitive and personal information have been involved in security breaches in the US alone (PrivacyRights.org). In 2007, the number of attacks on payment card processing doubled from 2006, a trend that we don’t see diminishing. According to Visa Inc., 80% of all identified compromises occurred at Level 4Merchants’ – businesses that process less than 1 million payment card transactions each year. And if you thought the hotel, resort, spa or hospitality industries were at all exempt from that, think again. Upwards of 55% of credit card fraud comes from the hospitality industry (The PCI Compliance Process for Hotels, American Hotel & Lodging Association).

The Payment Industry’s Response
In 2006, the major credit card companies joined together to form The Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS or PCI). PCI was established to eliminate the risk and mistreatment of cardholder data, enhance payment account data security, and to ultimately protect the cardholder. In 2007, the PCI compliance grace period ended and became mandatory.

The Implications of PCI Non-Compliance
All business operations accepting credit and debit cards must adopt processes to protect sensitive customer payment information and have no choice but to comply with PCI. Non-compliance puts the operation at great risk, leaving the business and its customers/guests vulnerable. Operations face fines of up to $500,000, increased card processing fees (or worse), the loss of the ability to accept payment cards, bad publicity, and brand devaluation. The consequences are serious, from monetary to business-ceasing.

Hospitality Industry’s Responsibility
Unfortunately, spa, leisure, hotel and resort operations are lagging behind other industries. The clock is ticking and the hospitality industry needs to embrace the requirements set forth to comply with PCI. At the core of this situation is the abundance of legacy software systems still being used in spas, hotels and resorts. Although the responsibility to comply with PCI isn’t all about technology, software undoubtedly plays a large role. Most of the archaic systems used don’t have the ability to properly encrypt and secure sensitive card holder information or to properly relay encrypted information to your selected credit card processor. And because of software architecture limitations in these systems, they cannot ever be updated to meet PCI standards. Your software could be hindering you from compliance and putting your operation, customers, and guests at great risk.

What Spas, Hotels, Resorts and Leisure Operations Need to Do
PCI compliance is the responsibility of the merchant, the hotel, the spa, not the software vendors – the onus is on you – you need to make it your business to find out whether your software system(s) meet or are at least undergoing the process necessary to meet PA DSS (Payment Application Data Security Standard – the certification for software developers [if you are using a custom application, then you are also responsible for making the application meet the PCI DSS requirements]). All applications must be PA-DSS compliant by July 1, 2010 (Visa Inc.) A listing of certified applications can be found on visa’s website. However, there are some simple things you can do to quickly evaluate whether your software is meeting even the most fundamental PA DSS (formerly called PABP) criteria.

• Are users automatically logged off after a maximum 10 – 15 minutes (max) of inactivity?

• Is all card holder data in folios, receipts and reports masked with maximum 4 – 6 digits appearing?

• Is card holder data masked or encrypted within the database?

• Is track data or card verification codes encrypted within the database?

PCI compliance is a serious business matter that should be approached at the top of your organization. Business processes and guidelines concerning the delicate handling of sensitive customer data and information should be put into place and should be incorporated into your corporate culture. Your software vendors should be engaged to help you understand how and where sensitive data is stored, processed, transmitted and eliminated.

If your current solution is not compliant, you should begin investigating alternative solutions as soon as possible. Make sure that your new solution(s) provider is well versed in the world of PCI and how it will impact your business. They obviously need to be compliant or should be well down the path to being compliant; otherwise, don’t even consider them as a potential software partner.

For more information on where to begin your PCI compliance, visit the PCI website or, call your credit card processor, which is always a great place to start.

PCI compliance may seem overwhelming at first, with all those acronyms and technical jargon. However, once you engage the right partners and familiarize yourself with the tools and processes, you will be better for it and the benefits will outweigh the work and resources invested. Protect your customer’s/guest’s sensitive data and in turn protect your operation. You can no longer afford to sit idle. PCI compliance is your responsibility!

Frank Pitsikalis,
ResortSuite Founder & CEO

This article is provided for information purposes only and the contents hereof are subject to change without notice. This article is not warranted to be error-free, nor subject to any other warranties or conditions, whether expressed orally or implied in law, including implied warranties and conditions or merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. We specifically disclaim any liability with respect to this article and no contractual obligations are formed either directly or indirectly by this article. This article may be freely copied and distributed provided that it is not modified in any way and is distributed only in its entirety.

Spa, Spa Business

With high unemployment rates and a wide-spread recession, you might think jobs in a “luxury” industry would be in short supply. Yet many day spas have actually seen an increase in demand, and need qualified massage therapists, yoga instructors and other professionals to keep pace with business.

Penny-pinching Americans may not be willing to spend extra on some luxuries or comfort items, but a trip to the day spa can be seen as making sense for both economic and health reasons, points out Debbie Bates, a massage therapy and spa instructor at Everest College in Fife, Wash. People who once took long vacations and bought big-ticket luxury items are cutting back, but still want to feel like they are treating themselves.

“We find that many people have started indulging in affordable luxuries like massages and yoga,” Bates says. “Day spas aren’t competing with the local beauty parlor. A trip to the spa is seen as a luxury good, like a two-week vacation or diamond bracelet. But compared to a cruise or expensive jewelry, a 90-minute massage is a real bargain.”

There are well over 14,500 spas in the U.S, with about 80 percent of those being day spas, according to the International Spa Association’s 2007 estimates. With many day spas experiencing increased demand, qualified salon and spa professionals are needed.

Demand for massage therapists is expected to grow by 20 percent through 2016, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Money Magazine lists massage therapy among its top 20 careers. Demand for spa professionals has been growing for a while.

The industry has boomed since 1999, and 53 percent of salon owners had job openings in 2006, hiring nearly half a million new employees, according to a 2007 report commissioned by the National Accrediting Commission of Cosmetology Arts and Sciences. Despite industry changes, the future of the salon and spa industry is strong, and demand for experienced employees still exceeds supply at many day spas, the commission found.

Another factor driving increased demand at spas is the public perception of spas’ emphasis on overall wellness, Bates says. “Spas are not simply places for ‘pampering.’ Rather, they promote health and wellness. They really focus on helping clients relax and manage their stress.”

Americans’ stress levels have been rising for years. In fact, a 2004 APA survey found that 73 percent of Americans cited money concerns as the top factor affecting their stress level. “When times are tough, finding the right way to relax might be the best thing you can do for your health,” Bates says.

“Some see massage as a luxury, but in our Massage Therapy program at Everest Institute, we really emphasize how massage promotes overall wellness and can be an essential part of a healthy lifestyle,” says Erin Murphy, who also teaches massage and spa therapy at Everest College in Fife. She says that professionals find that even when times are tough economically, clients keep coming back for their massages because they know it’s essential to mental and physical health.

“There is no doubt that the recession is going to affect all sectors of our economy, but we have seen that the spa industry is quite resilient,” Murphy says.

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Lawsuit after massage table in Skokie spa collapses

A woman is suing a Skokie spa Tuesday after a she was injured when the table used to administer her massage collapsed.

Mary Jo Filippini filed a lawsuit against Mario Tricoci of Old Orchard Tuesday in Cook County Circuit Court for injuries she suffered during Feb. 21 incident.

According to the suit, Filippini went to the Mario Tricoci Day Spa, 4999 Old Orchard Center, in Skokie, for a massage. After she removed her clothes and laid down for the massage, the table collapsed throwing her to the ground.

The woman suffered injuries, pain and anguish, and needed medical care because of the incident.

The lawsuit seeks in excess of $50,000 for damages.

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Indian Summer Tan & Retreat hosts grand-opening weekend

MERRIMAN VALLEY — This weekend, Indian Summer Tan & Retreat, newly opened at 1664 Merriman Road, will offer numerous specials to celebrate its grand opening.

The weekend open house will run Feb. 27 from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Feb. 28 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and March 1 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Owner David Rishel said specials offered during the weekend will include unlimited tanning for three months for $49.99, two months for $34.99 and one month for $19.99; the regular price is $34.99 per month.

Indian Summer also offers a flex package for tanning for $19.99 per month plus $1 per tanning session.

Also, massages, normally priced at $68 per hour, will be $200 for five one-hour sessions, $125 for three one-hour sessions and $45 for one one-hour session during the grand-opening event.

Specials can be purchased over the phone and are valid one year from purchase.

Rishel describes the business, which opened Jan. 19, as a “boutique-style retreat,” offering a range of tanning and spa services at affordable prices. In addition to the three tanning beds and the massage options, including a room for couple’s massages, Indian Summer offers air-brush tanning, waxing, paraffin wax treatments, makeup, and teeth whitening administered by a dental hygienist.

The business is decorated in Southwest colors and features local art available for sale.

“If you can’t relax here, you can’t relax anywhere,” Rishel said.

Indian Summer Tan & Retreat is open Mondays through Fridays from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

For more information, call (330) 983-9952.

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Starting in the 1990s, you couldn’t swing a plush white towel without hit ting a client in a “day spa” that had once been known simply as a salon.

Spas picked up way more steam in the late 1990s and beyond, when treating herself to a facial, massage and manicure/pedicure (now simply known as a mani/pedi) was simply what a woman did.

People worked hard and soon seemed to consider pampering mandatory as a reward. Facials, once something you only got on vacation or on a cruise, became, for some, a monthly must.

Consider this: According to Ohio’s Board of Cosmetology, the number of licensed estheticians in Ohio (they are permitted to do facials, skin treatments and waxing) grew from 453 in 1998 to 3,204 in 2008, a jump of 607 percent.

But just as analysts expect 2009 to bring retail store closings, some local day-spa owners expect their industry to shake out as well, with smaller spas either closing or salons cutting back on the spa services they offer and going back to their bread-and-butter haircut and color services.

Reps from beauty-supply houses are telling their customers – salon owners – that their sales to salon/day spas are dipping, noticeably, especially for nonhair-related products.

Like many working women, Tara Templeman, an events planner who lives in South Euclid, is considering financial priorities.

“I consider the economy, and my spending, and there’s some shakiness,” she says. “I definitely still make the same number of haircut and brow-wax appointments, but I’ve cut back on facials, manis and pedis.”

Frank Alvarez, of the Markfrank salon chain, has been in the business for 50 years, so he knows something about economic ups and downs.

He remembers the days when the “spas” were Helen Milner on Cleveland’s Shaker Square and Dominic’s in Beachwood – places patronized by wealthier women – and considers the more recent past, when every corner seemed to have a day spa.

He predicts a shakeout this year.

“I’ll tell you, this is the first time I’ve really seen the beauty business affected,” says Alvarez, who, along with his family, owns the two Markfrank salons in eastern suburbs.

Hair salons have long been dubbed recession-proof. People, especially women, likely will always want to have their hair cut and usually colored, too.

But in the past couple of decades, beauty salons began offering facials, waxing, massages, body wraps/exfoliation, pedicures and manicures. They had to add space to provide most of these services, which didn’t have as quick a turnaround as a small haircut station.

That meant less income per square foot.

Yet “it was a big trend, and people didn’t want to be the last ones to get on the boat,” says John DiJulius, owner of four John Roberts salons, two of which also have spas (Mayfield Heights and Solon).

An explosion of spa additions ensued, with supply fueling more demand.

Consider Charles Scott Salon and Spa, with salon-day spa locations in Rocky River and Westlake. In 1996, the Rocky River location had -in addition to a staff of hairstylists – three estheticians, one massotherapist, four nail technicians, one electrologist and a spa manager, says owner Chaz Henline. Today, it’s got six estheticians, five massotherapists, eight nail technicians, the same electrologist and the spa manager.

Henline opened a Westlake location as a full-service salon in 1993. “We had one esthetician, three nail techs, no massotherapists and no spa manager,” he says.

That location also evolved into a day spa in 2004 and now employs four estheticians, four massotherapists and five nail techs.

Henline took the new kind of business seriously, building dedicated areas to create the sanctuary environment such services require.

One area in which spas likely won’t see a big drop is waxing. Until the 1990s, salons used to do a little brow and upper lip waxing, sure, but bikini waxes were an exotic oddity. Now, every spa will vouch for how that portion of their business has grown – which is why there are so many licensed estheticians in Ohio now.

Nicole Flesher, spa director at John Roberts, says: “Waxing has skyrocketed. The numbers continue to go up still, every year. People never used to get Brazilians, and now I might do six or eight a day – maybe 10 a day in summer.”

Kelli Hosso, spa manager for Charles Scott, concurs. “Body and face waxing is very steady. People are not willing to give that up,” she says.

Some spas are using creative means to try to head off dips in other services, including massages. Many businesses, such as Charles Scott and the Five Seasons day spa in Westlake, have created “massage clubs,” which give people discounts if they commit to several appointments.

Still, in dire times, people do cut back on things that aren’t necessities.

Plus, says Alvarez, “You have so many day spas now. The spa thing is overplayed, it’s saturated.”

Still, he and DiJulius say the spa/salon industry’s ace in the hole is the personal relationships people develop with their hairstylists – and estheticians, manicurists or massotherapists.

“So many things that used to provide human contact – going to the bank, or the video store – you can do online now,” says DiJulius. “We’re one of the last legal ways to pay someone to touch you – someone you trust.”

As Alvarez says, “You continue to give the best service you can, you’re nice to people.

“And you wait it out.”

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Rhonda Stonebreaker, the owner of the former Victorian Day Spa, understands the importance of location when it comes to her business.

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GREENVILLE, S.C. – Kara Spa, Greenville’s first destination day spa located at 105 Lavinia Ave., has added Licensed Massage Therapist Carolyn Bain to its staff. Prior to joining Kara Spa as a full-time massage therapist, Bain served as an intern at the spa.

Bain received her massage therapy certificate from Greenville Technical College, where she completed over 750 hours of classroom and clinical study in anatomy and physiology, business ethics, Swedish massage, deep tissue and neuromuscular therapy, and sports massage.

In addition to her credentials as a massage therapist, Bain also has a bachelor’s degree in athletic training from Springfield College in Springfield, Mass. She became a certified athletic trainer in June 2006, and has worked with Greenville Hospital System, serving North Greenville University since 2006.

“I enjoyed my intern experience at Kara Spa so much, I knew that’s where I wanted to work full-time,” said Bain. “The staff at Kara Spa has not only inspired me, they have given me the tools to run a successful business, and taught me the importance of exceeding clients’ expectations and giving back to the Greenville community,” added

“We’re thrilled to add Carolyn to our staff at Kara Spa,” said Alicia Moreau, who owns Kara Spa, along with her daughter Korri Moreau. “Her expertise, dedication and personality will be an asset to Kara Spa and our clients,” added Moreau.

Kara Spa is owned and operated by Alicia and Korri Moreau, a mother-daughter business team who started the spa four years ago at 650 East Washington Street in Greenville. Kara Spa relocated to 105 Lavinia Ave. in downtown Greenville on February 19, 2009.

ABOUT KARA SPA
Kara is Greenville’s first destination day spa…where guests are greeted with a fragrant herbal tea, chilled or warmed, to set the mood; where warm robes encourage relaxation; where a sauna, pre- or post-treatment, soothes away stress and cares.

Kara’s licensed staff has more than 29 years of experience providing spa services while building lasting relationships and friendships with clients from all walks of life. The staff at Kara Spa always strives to exceed each guest’s expectations.

Kara Spa’s services include deep-tissue and neuro-muscular massage therapy, body wraps, cosmetics, facials, eye and lip treatments, lash and brow tinting, waxing, natural nail care, pre-natal and gentleman’s services.

The boutique at Kara Spa also offers spa packages and gift certificates for spa services, as well as heath and beauty products, home décor, and a wide range of gift ideas for any occasion

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On January 1 Melissa Illingworth became the new owner of the lovely River Village day spa Simplify Your Life (SYL), making the beginning of the new year a divine one.

Thrilled about this new business venture, Illingworth will continue to make SYL a top San Diego North day spa destination where patrons can receive quality services that rejuvenate the body, mind and soul.

“I saw such wonderful potential to bring therapeutic body work into this area because of its beautiful atmosphere and peaceful location,” said Illingworth, who also owns Inner Sanctum. “SYL is everything I have ever wanted.”

Inner Sanctum, explained Illingworth, has merged into SYL but will remain geared toward corporate massage.

“I am so excited about owning SYL because it has been a dream realization for me; I always wanted to own a day spa when I got started in therapeutic massage,” said Illingworth.

All of the wonderful head-to-toe SYL treatments will remain on its menu of services, providing a soothing experience where one can retreat and relax.

An added bonus is that the original founder of SYL, Karen Choules, has been delighted to stay onboard to serve her clients.

Illingworth is pleased to introduce more therapeutic treatments to the SYL menu.

“I want to bring in more different types of massage therapy and I hope to create a massage program to make it more affordable in this economy,” she said. “I want massage to be accessible to everyone; that is my vision.”

Highly regarded as an intuitive massage therapist, Illingworth will continue to help those with injuries, chronic tension and lymphatic drainage and myofascial release issues in her treatments.

Having been an instructor in massage schools, Illingworth looks forward to teaching her staff members her specialized techniques.

Also having a passion for the arts, down the road Illingworth plans to make SYL’s retail product section more artistic in terms of clothing and home decor.

“I would like to open up this area to local artists who want to showcase their items,” she said.

When it comes to pampering, SYL provides an array of blissful massages, facials and skin care treatments in its private treatment rooms.

In addition to their exceptional skincare line which caters to the mature skin, its Cold Light Photo Rejuvenation therapy and DiamondTome Microdermabrasion are great treatments for wrinkle reduction and skin texture improvement.

“And our VascuTouch treatment effectively removes skin tags and cherry angiomas,” said Illingworth.

Its state-of-the-art Vichy Shower is another draw for many spa patrons. This exclusive and invigorating wet table is the ideal way to perform body wraps and scrubs.

“It is so relaxing; it’s like taking a shower while lying down,” Illingworth said.

Their scrub treatments, she added, are a superb way to exfoliate and hydrate dry skin.

And being that SYL is a full-service day spa, its magnificent spa packages offer the escape and indulgence that one deserves.

From massages, facials and body exfoliations to body wraps and waxing, the SYL team tailors each treatment to the specific needs of their clientele, including those with sensitive skin.

Illingworth calls her SYL therapists “highly trained in multiple modalities.”

Illingworth looks forward to sharing wonderful SYL treatments with members of the community. “I want SYL to be a place where people can literally ‘simplify their life’ by coming here.”

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